Fencing

at the University of Rochester

Frequently Asked Questions

  1. Does the club offer instruction for beginners?

    Yes! Wednesday and Saturday practices have dedicated novice coaching. All fencers with no experience will start out fencing foil; once they have demonstrated skills with the foil, they can move on to other weapons. Private lessons with our coaches can be arranged.

    The quickest way to get info is to sign up for our mailing list: urfencing Yahoo! Group

  2. What sort of competitions do you attend?

    We'll roadtrip almost anywhere for a strong competition; last season, we competed in Pittsburgh, Philly, New York City, Cleveland, Boston, and most points in-between. Several UR fencers competed at last year's National Championships in Sacramento, CA.

  3. I'd like to buy my own stuff. Where can I?

    There are equipment vendors at many of the major competitions we attend, but most business is done online. Feel free to ask any of our coaches for equipment recommendations, here are a couple of suppliers we like:

  4. Who are the coaches?

    UR Fencing is a cooperative group; the more experienced fencers help develop the novices. However, the folks who are currently leading the charge:

    Eric Dudley - Dudley is in charge of the beginner program. He's a C-rated foilist.

    Oleg Solomonik - Oleg coaches epee. He's unrated, but will most likely beat you. Badly.

    • 1989 - Candidate of Science in Education (comparable to a Ph.D. in the U.S.)
    • 1978 - Master's degree in Physical Education
    • 1972 - Candidate of Master of Sports of the USSR
    • 1972-1974 - Champion of Dagestan Republic of Russia in epee fencing

    Ben Van Son - Ben is a foil coach and an A-rated foilist.

    Darius Wei - Foil/Sabre Coach. Darius is a Division II North American Cup finalist in foil (A06), and a nationally rated referee.

  5. I'm super hardcore. Where do I go?

    The quick and easy answer: stay here! However, Rochester has plenty of resources for fencers who want to train beyond what the University provides. A few of our foilists go to the Rochester Fencing Club, but currently, UR is the only place in town for epee and sabre. If you're truly hardcore, talk to Darius -- we do weight training, conditioning, and fencing outside of practices.